Child support disappears and parent blames a local company for the missing money

Mother goes on letter-writing campaign for help

ABC Action News takes action for a local mother who says she's been fighting for child support for months.

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TAMPA - Angry and tired. That is how Christine Lowry described herself just two months ago. Lowry claims she's spent most of the last year fighting for her daughter's court-ordered child support.

This mother of two showed me letters she's written to her ex's employer. The more than $400 a month in child support disappeared months ago after Lowry claims the company her daughter's father works for stopped garnishing his check.

We contacted the Department of Revenue which oversees child support enforcement. Parents who find themselves in a similar situation have two options. They can report the violation to DOR and or they can hire an attorney.

DOR explained, “A common way to enforce the payer's duty to withhold is by filing a motion for contempt for failure to honor the income deduction order."

Just a couple of weeks after we spoke with state officials regular deposits returned to Lowry's bank account.

Statewide there are more than 100,000 cases in which the non-custodial parent is owed more than $20,000 in arrears.